Empty property council tax in Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead

For the first year empty you pay the standard headline rate (Band D is £1,973 a year). After 12 months continuously empty, Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead Council applies a 100% premium, doubling the bill to £3,946 for a Band D. After 5 years the premium rises to 200% (triple), and after 10 years it reaches 300% (quadruple), so the same Band D would owe £7,892 a year.

The Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023 lowered the qualifying period for the 100% long-term empty premium from 2 years to 1 year, effective 1 April 2024 in England. Most councils, including Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, adopted the shorter threshold. That means properties that would previously have escaped the premium until year 2 now get hit at the 12-month mark.

Possibly, for a short initial period. Class C is the local discount councils can apply when a property first becomes empty and unfurnished. It varies by council from 0% to a 100% discount for the first month. Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead Council publishes its current Class C policy on the council tax page of its website; the figures change at each annual budget.

Not immediately. There is a separate Class F exemption for properties left empty after the owner's death. The exemption runs from the date of death and continues for up to 6 months after the grant of probate or letters of administration. After that window the property is treated as a normal empty home and the standard timeline applies: full rate for the first year, then the 100% premium kicks in.

Some councils give a Class D discount for properties undergoing major repairs and structural alteration, typically for up to 12 months. The discount level varies. Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead Council inspects on application. Critically, time spent vacant while waiting for renovation works does count towards the long-term empty clock, so dragging a refurb past 12 months can still trigger the 100% premium.

If the property is furnished and used as a second home, it falls under the second home rules instead, which now have their own 100% premium in most councils. Furnishing alone does not reset the empty clock; the council looks at whether the property is genuinely lived in and used. Briefly placing furniture inside to dodge the premium will not work and risks being challenged as fraud.

Active marketing for sale or for let creates an exemption from the long-term empty premium for up to 12 months from the date the property went on the market. You need to evidence the marketing (agent agreement, listing screenshots). Once let or sold, the new resident or owner picks up the bill from their occupation date.

Councils cross-check council tax accounts against utility usage data, electoral roll entries, and on-site inspection visits. They also receive tip-offs through "report an empty home" forms on their website. Once flagged, the empty period is measured from the date the last resident moved out, not the date the council was notified.